Blogs

In the end this probably shouldn’t come as a surprise, but foxsportsarizona.com’s Craig Morgan is reporting wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and Eagles QB Kevin Kolb worked out together at one point this offseason over in Arizona State University’s Dickey Dome. (To be fair, the report said they organized a workout, not that anyone actually saw the passes. I think you can connect the dots.)

I’m sure it was to keep such a thing under wraps but it’s tough to do that forever when there are probably plenty of people at ASU who knew about it and could leak the information. Or another player could have said something. Who knows.

It doesn’t mean anything in terms of whether a deal can actually be worked out to get Kolb to Arizona (even if there are reports Kolb is shopping for real estate in Arizona) but it makes since that Fitz and Kolb would want to take a test drive beforehand.

Now, if the lockout would just end so something real could actually take place …

Veteran linebacker Clark Haggans came off the field Monday exhausted. It was pretty hot and humid, and given the dearth of linebackers — the Cards that day had just three outside ‘backers, since newcomer Cyril Obiozor had yet to arrive and practice squaders Pago Togafau and Curtis Gatewood weren’t there yet either — the 33-year-old Haggans was basically taking every rep. No one on the team is in better shape than Haggans, but he still joked that “I was looking for rookies to take my place and he’s out there next to me,” referring to Daryl Washington.

By the time the team was running gassers at the end of the workout, “I was seeing heat monkeys,” Haggans said.

That’ll change by Wednesday’s practice (which, because of the temperatures breaking a bit, will be back at the Cards’ Tempe facility, as will Thursday’s, instead of a planned visit to ASU’s Dickey Dome). Obiozor, Gatewood and Togafau are in place to take some snaps. Still, now that the Cards have a roster in place — at least for week one — it is an interesting breakdown.

The Cards are clearly still looking to find the right combination in the secondary, which is why they have kept six cornerbacks right now. A.J. Jefferson (pictured below) has upside — I doubt he’ll be active on game days at first — and they aren’t sure yet what they have in Brandon McDonald, the newcomer from Cleveland. I am also guessing there will be a lot of nickel and dime looks, like strong safety Adrian Wilson playing in/near the box. That’s one way to not worry about needing too many linebackers.

Still, the Cards only have seven LBs on the active roster and one — Obiozor — has to show he fits.

— Interested to see what the Cards do with their seven defensive linemen, although since a guy like Gabe Watson actually play more special teams than most nose tackles, they may just make all seven active on game days.

— WR Andre Roberts is still listed as the No. 1 punt returner, but he is going to have to show something coming back from his shoulder injury (he said Tuesday he is healed) to have that job out of the gate. Is Max Komar active in the first game? Do the Cards stick Steve Breaston back there until Roberts is ready?

— I don’t know much about fullback Jerome Johnson, but they feel comfortable enough that he is the only FB on the roster. Wonder how that will work, or if the Cards use more two-tight end stuff in St. Louis.

— Notice Jorrick Calvin actually made the Eagles’ roster. I don’t think he was going to make it here. Now that Marshay Green is back on the practice squad (in case you missed it, Green and Togafau rounded out the eight-man reserve group), the Cards still have the young untested group in the secondary as they search for one or two to develop.

— Four undrafted guys — QB Max Hall, WR Stephen Williams, Komar and Jefferson — made the roster. Green made the practice squad. Not a bad undrafted haul, even if only a couple pan out (and it’s hard to believe Williams, at least, isn’t well on his way).

Coach Ken Whisenhunt was less about Derek-Anderson-is-starting-the-preseason-finale and more about the-lineup-overall-did-well-last-game-so-why-change today, but still, that means Anderson will start the preseason finale, and, you know, we’ll go from there.

Among other practice news today, the biggest was the venue. The Cards were at ASU’s Dickey Dome today for the first of what looks like many, with Whisenhunt calling it a “dry run” to see how the Cards could use a practice bubble (although the coach said he “underestimated” the need for a bubble when he first arrived in Arizona).

The injury list was the same. Of the guys on the sideline, I don’t expect WR Andre Roberts (shoulder), RB Jason Wright (toe) or RB LaRod Stephens-Howling to play Thursday. No reason to risk anything.

Whisenhunt did address his talk with Matt Leinart yesterday afternoon, saying that “they touched base on where everything was.” Whiz said he feels the coaching staff has been consistent through the years in how they communicate with players and Whiz added he was comfortable with that process. But “there must have been some breakdown because he didn’t hear what he wanted, but hopefully we got that cleared up yesterday.”